Heavy rainfall leaves many dead in China

Heaviest rainfall in 60 years leaves 37 dead in Beijing, as more than 500 flights are cancelled.

The heaviest rain to hit Beijing in six decades has killed at least 37 people and left cars and buses submerged, Chinese state media has reported.

Xinhua news agency said on Sunday more victims of the downpours which battered much of the capital throughout Saturday had been discovered, revising up considerably the number of dead from ten.

More than 500 flights were cancelled at the main airport, the Beijing News reported.

The rain on Saturday night knocked down trees in Beijing and trapped cars and buses in waist-deep water in some areas.

The rainstorms led to the evacuation of more than 50,000 people from their homes in Beijing, mostly from the city's outlying mountainous districts, as up to 46cm (18 inches) of rain lashed some areas, the agency added.

Xinhua quoted the Beijing municipal government as saying 25 of the victims had drowned, six had died when their houses collapsed, one was killed by a lightning strike and five had been electrocuted.

Twenty-two of the bodies have been identified, it added.

The agency had earlier reported the death toll at 10 but said it was expected to rise as numerous people, including rescue workers, were missing.

The government flood control headquarters told AFP news agency damage assessments were ongoing.

Three bodies were recovered in Beijing's mountainous Fangshan region where several landslides were reported, China National Radio reported.

Up to 46cm of rain fell in Fangshan district, the most rain to hit the city in a 14-hour period since records began in 1951, Xinhua said.